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IX   THE 


United  States. 


Read  Before  The 

Imerican  Catholic  Historical  Society  of  Philadelphia, 

ON    FEBRUARY    23,    1886. 


LAWRENCE    ERANCIS    ELICK 


?V\\\_KOtV.?U\K-. 


% 


THE 


FRENCH  REFUGEE  TRAPPISTS 


ciCDis^iPiLjXisa:Eisirc&  or 


O^'m-eit'C^Ki^i    ^-oMti^cc  ^^^dl-ai-ica^ ^-a-c^e/^u 
OF    Pid[IL,A.DELPHI^. 

F.    X.    REIJSS,  I^ibrsry    211    S,     13th    Street. 

Cbr.  SecVy.  and  Librarian, 
3643  Makket  Stkebt. 

^- — :^  Your  Exchanges  are  Desired. 


Imerican  Catholic  Historical  Society  tif  Philadelphia, 

ON    FEBRUARY    23,    1886. 


LAWRENCE    KRANCIS    KLICK. 


?U\V.N\i't.LPV\\K-. 


1 


THE 


FRENCH  REFUGEE  TRAPPISTS 


IN   THE 


United  States 


Read  Before  The 

Imerican  Catholic  Historical  Society  of  Philadelphia, 

ON    FEBRUARY    23,    1886. 


IvAWRENCK  Francis   Elicpc. 


e  Ijrnench  | 


.nappists 


IT)  •  1^  •  U.r)ifcd  •  olales. 


A'ER  since  the  rules  of  St.  Benedict  had  birth  in  the  piety 
and  wisdom  of  that  great  and  holy  man,  they  have,  in 


|Q^L»'  some  form  or  other,  drawn  men  from  the  world  and 
impregnated  their  lives  with  sanctity  and  wisdom.  Time 
and  the  perversity  of  man's  inclinations  might  occasionally  relax 
them,  but  only  to  again  give  them  champions,  such  as  St.  Ber- 
nard in  910,  St.  Robert  in  1098,  and  Armand  Jean  Le  Bout- 
hillier  de  Ranee  in  1664. 

The  name,  Les  Trappistes,  came  about  in  this  way.  In  11 22 
a  French  count,  Routrou  of  Perch,  made  what  he  believed  to  be 
a  miraculous  escape  from  some  great  danger.  Out  of  gratitude 
to  the  blessed  Virgin,  to  whom  he  ascribed  his  preservation,  he 
vowed  to  build  a  church  and  to  place  it  under  her  patronage. 
He  fulfilled  his  vow  by  building  a  church  in  a  solitary  valley, 
surrounded  by  dense  forests  and  in  a  spot  where  a  number  of 
streams  come  together  and  form  the  river  Yton.  This  place  has 
from  time  immemorial  been  called  La  Trappe.  When  therefore, 
the  good  Count  Routrou  afterwards  brought  monks  from  Savigny, 
and  established  a  monastery  for  them  near  his  church,  they  were 
given  the  name  Les  Trappistes. 

It  was  here,  at  La  Trappe,  that  the  monks,  having  gradually 
forgotten  the  rigor  of  their  rules,  were  reminded  of  it  by  the 
saintly  Abbe  de  Ranee.  He  had  just  about  fully  established  his 
reform  when  he  was  called  to  his  reward  ;  but  his  good  work  went 
on  until  it  was  disturbed  by  the  French  revolution, 

(3) 


•153129 


On  f'ebf-uaiy'''t3fl^i(;r^9o;^  all  religious  orders  in  France  were 
suppressed  by  a  legislative  act  of  the  French  government.  There 
was,  however,  too  much  of  the  spirit  of  St.  Benedict,  St.  Bernard, 
St.  Robert,  and  an  Abbe  de  Ranee  at  La  Trappe,  to  be  dispersed 
by  a  mere  edict.  Dom  Augustine,  one  of  the  priests  of  La 
Trappe,  resolved,  since  he  could  not  keep  his  vows  in  his  native 
land,  to  establish  his  Order  in  some  other.  With  twenty-three  of 
his  brethren,  all  volunteers  like  himself,  he  formally  applied  to 
various  governments  for  an  Asylum.  He  received  a  favorable 
answer  from  the  Senate  of  Friborg,  which,  on  April  12th,  1791, 
granted  him  permission  to  establish  a  home  in  Switzerland.  The 
twenty-four  monks  signed  a  covenant,  forming  the  Abbey  of  Val 
Sa7ite  de  Notre  Dame  de  La  Trappe  on  April  26th,  and  elected 
Dom  Augustine,  Abbot,  on  May  3d  of  the  same  year.  The 
election,  however,  was  not  confirmed,  nor  the  Abbey  formally 
established  by  Rome,  until  November  27th,  1794.  By  this  time 
so  many  recruits  had  flocked  in,  that  several  new  houses  had  gone 
out  from  Val  Sante,  and  had  sought  asylums  in  different  parts  of 
Europe. 

One  of  the  day  dreams  of  Dom  Augustine,  from  his  first  arrival 
at  Val  Sante,  had  been  to  send  a  colony  to  America.  Twice  he 
essayed  it,  but  each  time  the  colony  was  providentially  located 
elsewhere.  In  1793,  Dom  Jean  Baptiste  departed  for  Canada 
with  some  companions.  When  he  got  to  Brabant  he  was  so 
earnestly  implored  by  the  people  to  remain,  that  he  sought  the 
permission  of  his  Superior,  and  established  a  house  there.  In 
April,  1794,  a  large  number  of  recruits  were  sent  to  Brabant, 
with  the  understanding  that  a  colony  was  to  start  from  there  for 
Canada.  An  attempt  to  carry  out  the  proviso  was  made  in  July 
of  the  same  year,  when  Jean  Baptiste  again  started  for  Canada 
with  several  companions,  this  time  by  way  of  England.  A  pious 
Englishman,  by  name  of  Thomas  Weld,  offered  him  a  location  on 
his  land  at  Lulworth,  Dorcestershire,  and  pressed  him  to  accept. 
Again  Dom  Jean  sought  permission  to  depart  from  his  instructions 
and  located  his  colony  in  England. 

Meanwhile  the  Order  grew  so  rapidly  that  Dom  Augustine  had 
considerable  difficulty  in  supplying  Asylums  for  the  outgrowths. 
Already  flourishing  off"-shoots  from  Val  Sante,  existed  in  Spain, 
Italy,  Holland  and  England,     But  persecution  went  hand  in  hand 


with  success  ;  no  sooner  were  colonies  established  than  the  far- 
reaching  influence  of  the  revolution  again  routed  them,  and  new 
asylums  had  to  be  sought.  Russia  promised  a  safe  retreat,  and 
in  1796,  quite  a  large  colony  took  refuge  under  its  neutrality.  It 
proved  a  poor  asylum,  and  in  1800,  after  the  monks  of  Val  Santa 
had  sought  shelter  in  its  dominions,  on  account  of  outrages 
committed  upon  their  Abbey,  all  Trappists  were  expelled  from 
the  country  by  a  Ukase. 

This  revived  in  Dom  Augustine  the  great  desire  to  establish 
his  Order  in  America.  For  nearly  two  years  he  confided  it  to  his 
own  bosom,  striving  meanwhile  to  find  homes  for  his  persecuted 
brethren.  Some  were  sent  to  England,  some  were  received  by 
brethren  in  Germany,  and  many  went  back  to  Val  Sante,  whither 
they  were  invited  by  the  Senate  of  Friborg  in  1802.  America 
was  not  forgotten  ;  as  soon  as  affairs  were  somewhat  settled,  Dom 
Augustine  confided  to  his  brethren  his  long  cherished  hope  and 
desire.  His  enthusiasm  fell  not  on  barren  soil.  Pere  Urban 
Guillet,  one  of  the  original  covenanters  of  Val  Sante,  a  man  of 
great  piety  and  zeal,  but  evidently  possessing  little  worldly 
wisdom,  craved  permission  to  undertake  the  difficult  task.  The 
chief  obstacle  in  the  way  was  the  lack  of  funds  ;  but  great  as  this 
obstacle  might  appear  to  others,  it  dwindled  into  insignificance  in 
the  presence  of  Pere  Urban' s  faith  and  zeal.  Having  obtained 
permission,  he  at  once  proceeded  to  select  his  companions,  and 
to  seek  the  means.  He  had  no  difliculty  in  procuring  the  former; 
the  latter  he  got  in  spite  of  difficulties. 

On  January  i6th,  1803,  after  about  two  years'  preparation,  his 
colony  came  together  at  Amsterdam,  preparatory  to  setting  sail. 
At  first,  it  consisted  of  five  priests,  including  Pere  Urban,  six 
lay-brothers  and  eight  students ;  but  before  departure  the  number 
was  augmented  to  twenty-two  by  the  arrival  of  more  members  of 
the  Order.  This  number  was  too  small  for  the  zeal  of  Pere 
Urban  ;  knowing  that  "  the  vineyard  of  the  Lord  was  large,"  in 
America,  and  the  "laborers  therein  few,"  he  conceived  the  idea  of 
taking  with  him  a  number  of  young  men  and  educating  them  for 
the  priesthood.  He  had  no  difficulty  in  securing  young  men  in 
Amsterdam,  as  many  were  seeking  an  opportunity  to  get  to 
America  ;  but,  unfortunately,  he  was  no  student  of  human  nature, 
and  many  "tares  were  gathered  in,"  with  a  little  wheat.     When 


his  Superior,  Dom  Augustine,  came  to  see  him  and  his  colony 
off,  he  remarked  that  he  did  not  Hke  the  looks  of  these  young 
men ;  poor  Pere  Urban  was  astonished,  but  it  was  not  long  until 
he  discovered  the  meaning  of  his  Superior's  words. 

The  colony,  consisting  of  forty  people,  set  sail  on  May  29th, 
and  arrived  at  Baltimore  on  September  4th,  1803.  The  voyage 
was  long  and  full  of  hardships,  as  the  provisions  ran  short,  though 
Pere  Urban  had  laid  in  a  special  store  for  his  people,  and  for  two 
months  all  persons  on  board  had  to  subsist  on  two  ounces  of 
bread  each  a  day.  At  Baltimore  they  were  kindly  received  by 
M.  Nagot,  to  whom  Pere  Urban  had  a  letter  of  introduction,  and 
were  comfortably  quartered  and  well  entertained  at  the  Sulpician 
College.  But  in  spite  of  the  kind  reception,  Pere  Urban's  first 
day  in  America  was  a  sad  one.  Two  of  his  Amsterdam  proteges, 
and  one  of  his  own  flock,  who  had  been  tainted  on  the  way  over, 
took  advantage  of  the  confusion  in  going  from  the  ship  to  the 
College,  and  deserted.  Pere  Urban  now  understood  the  unfavor- 
able comments  of  his  Superior. 

The  faculty  of  the  Sulpician  College  strove  to  make  their 
visitors  welcome,  and  even  offered  them  a  permanent  home  in  the 
College.  Rev.  Father  Moranvillers,  a  parish  priest  of  Baltimore, 
supplemented  these  good  offices  by  raising  money  for  them  among 
his  parishoners  ;  but  Pere  Urban,  fearing  that  he  and  his  brethren 
might  be  in  the  way  and  prove  a  burden,  expressed  a  desire  to 
depart.  Accordingly,  after  a  stay  of  some  weeks  at  the  College, 
he,  by  the  advice  of  the  Sulpicians,  started  with  his  colony  for 
Pigeon  Hills,  Adams  Co.,  Pennsylvania. 

Of  the  trip  there  is  no  record,  but  it  was  likely  made  on  foot, 
and  over  bad  roads.  The  distance  is  fifty  miles,  to  travel  which, 
it  must  have  taken  them  three  or  four  days.  The  Sulpicians  and 
Father  Moranvillers,  sent  wagon  loads  of  food  along,  and 
probably  also  some  furniture. 

There  is  considerable  difference  of  opinion  in  regard  to  the 
time  of  arrival  of  the  Trappists  at  Pigeon  Hills.  Father  Lamden 
says  they  "first  went  to  Cambria  Co.,  Pennsylvania,  and  from  there 
to  Pigeon  Hills.  In  this,  he  is  undoubtedly  mistaken.  Arch- 
bishop Spalding,  both  in  his  "Catholic  Missions  of  Kentucky," 
and  in  his  "Sketches  of  life,  times  and  character  of  Bishop 
Flaget,"  gives  August    15th,   1804,   as   the   time.     Rev.  Father 


7 

Maes,  probably  copying  from  Archbishop  Spalding-,  gives  the 
same  date. 

Gaillardin,*  who  is  the  best  authority  to  follow,  as  he  wrote 
carefully  and  deliberately,  and  was  probably  acquainted'  with 
some  of  the  monks,  who  belonged  to  the  colony,  and  afterwards 
returned  to  Europe,  and  likewise  had  at  his  command  the 
memoirs  written  by  Fathers  Maria  Joseph  and  Vincent  de  Paul, 
says  they  stopped  with  the  Sulpicians  at  the  College  some 
weeks,  and  then  went  to  Pigeon  Hills.  His  reference  to  their 
gathering  wild  fruits  and  nuts  for  food  upon  their  arrival,  is 
evidence  that  they  went  there  in  autumn.  Probably  the  correct 
time  therefore  is  October,  1803. 

Pigeon  Hills  t  is  the  name  given  to  a  tract  of  land  in  the  eastern 
portion  of  Adams  Co.,  Pennsylvania,  near  the  foot  of  Pigeon 
Hills,  in  Oxford  Township.  It  is  about  ten  miles  from  Gettysburg 
and  about  four  or  five  from  Conewago.  Another  name  given  to 
It,  and  probably  a  more  familiar  one,  is  the  Seminary  farm.  This 
sobriquet  it  earned  by  its  having  been,  at  various  times,  the 
location  of  the  Seminary  School.  Even  as  far  back  as  1794, 
some  young  men  got  their  preliminary  education  there.  The 
farm  is  quite  large  and  originally  consisted  of  two  tracts,  one 
granted  to  Henry  Gearnhardt,  on  July  26th,  1750,  by  the  Pro- 
prietaries of  Pennsylvania,  and  the  other  to  Robert  Lorimore,  on 
September  19th,  of  the  same  year.  On  September  19th,  1758, 
Lorimore  purchased  Mr.  Gearnhardt's  tract,  and  on  April  4th, 
1794,  he  sold  the  two  tracts  to  a  reputed  monk  by  name  of  Joseph 
Heront,  for  1000  pounds.  Mr.  Heront  opened  a  school  on  his 
farm,  but  was  probably  not  very  successful,  for  after  a  few  years 
he  took  his  departure  for  France,  leaving  his  property  to  the 
Superior  of  the  Sulpician  College  at  Baltimore.  At  least  one  of 
his  pupils,  a  Mr.  Myers,  afterwards  became  a  Catholic  Priest. 

The  Trappists,  according  to  Gaillardin,  found  a  comfortable  and 
commodious  house  awaiting  them  at  Pigeon  Hills.  As  it  was 
Fall,  and  a  Winter  and  Spring  would  have  to  ensue  before  they 

*In  preparing  this  paper,  I  have  taken  much  of  my  information  from 
Gaillardin's  work,  entitled  "  Le  Trappistes,"  published  in  Paris. 

t  Most  of  my  information  about  Pigeon  Hills  I  have  taken  from  John 
G.  Reilly's  History  of  Catholicity  in  Adams  County. 


could  reap  the  fruits  of  their  labor  on  the  farm,  they  had  for  the 
time  being  to  depend  for  the  necessaries  of  life  upon  the  Sulpi- 
cians  and  Father  Moranvillers,  who  kept  sending  corn,  flour  and 
dried  fruits  from  Baltimore.  To  economize  the  charity  of  their 
friends,  they  gathered  wild  fruits  and  nuts  from  the  adjacent 
woods,  and  tried  in  a  certain  measure  to  subsist  on  them.  They 
prepared  some  ground,  and  in  the  Spring  planted  an  acre  of  corn, 
three  little  patches  of  potatoes,  and  a  garden.  The  students  gave 
great  trouble  ;  they  would  not  work  on  the  plea  that  they  had  to 
study,  and  likewise  would  not  study. 

On  them  Gaillardine  lays  the  blame  for  the  failure  of  the  settle- 
ment at  Pigeon  Hills.  They  were  not  only  non-producers,  but 
consumed  everything  they  could  lay  their  hands  on.  The  poor 
monks  could  do  nothing  with  them  ;  they  would  not  expel  them 
because  they  had  brought  them  to  a  strange  country  and  felt  in 
conscience  bound  to  support  them. 

Of  the  daily  routine  life  of  either  the  students  or  the  monks, 
Gaillardin  makes  no  mention.  Much,  however,  can  be  supplied  by 
the  imagination.  His  reference  to  the  complete  insubordination 
of  the  students  during  the  absence  of  Pere  Urban  ;  their  feasting 
upon  meats  and  vegetables  ;  their  sports  and  games ;  and  the 
patient  submissiveness  of  the  monks ;  gives  us  glimpses  which  we 
can  use  as  corner-stones,  so  to  speak,  whereon  to  build  fuller 
descriptions. 

Students  are  proverbial  for  their  jolly  times.  Place  them 
where  you  will,  they  will  try  to  enjoy  themselves.  Situated  as 
were  the  searchers  after  lore  at  Pigeon  Hills,  they  no  doubt  held 
high  carnival.  Short  study  hours  and  long  sleeping  hours,  few 
prayers  and  many  meals,  hunting,  fishing,  games  and  gymnastics, 
is  the  programme  that  naturally  suggests  itself  to  one's  mind  in 
trying  to  picture  their  probable  daily  life. 

The  monks  of  course  followed  their  rules,*  and  therefore  lived 
as  all  other  Trappist  monks  live.  They  observed  perpetual 
silence  except  when  it  was  necessary  to  speak  with  the  Superior, 
They  arose  at  half-past  two  in  the  morning.  Father  Nerinx  says 
at  one,  and  retired  at  seven  in  the  evening  during  Winter,  and  at 
eight  during   Summer.     They  took  two  meals  a  day  between 

*I  give  here  the  Trappists'  rules  as  observed  at  Val  Sante. 


Easter  and  the  middle  of  September,  ard  one  meal  a  day  during 
the  remainder  of  the  year.  When  two  meals  a  day  were  allowed, 
one  was  taken  at  twelve  o'clock,  noon,  and  the  other  in  the  even- 
ing. When  only  one  meal  a  day  was  permitted,  it  was  taken 
about  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  The  usual  quantity  of 
bread  given  each  monk  was  one  pound  a  day  ;  but  at  the  discre- 
tion of  the  Superior,  an  additional  ration  might  be  granted  of  a 
kind  of  bread  made  of  three  parts  of  potatoes  and  twelve  parts 
of  bran,  called  the  bread  of  indulgence.  In  Summer,  when  hard 
manual  labor  had  to  be  performed,  fresh  vegetables  were  added 
to  the  diet.  Water  was  the  only  drink  permissible  to  the  healthy. 
A  beverage  made  of  wild  or  dried  fruits,  barley  or  juniper  berries, 
was  at  the  option  of  the  sick.  They  worked  from  half-past  five 
to  half- past  eight  in  the  morning,  and  from  a  little  before  two  to 
half-past  four  in  the  afternoon,  during  the  Summer  ;  and  from  nine 
to  half-past  eleven  in  the  morning,  and  from  twelve  to  two  in  the 
afternoon,  during  Winter.  During  Lent  they  began  work  at  half- 
past  nine.  The  intervals  between  the  working  hours  were  de- 
voted to  chanting  the  office,  meditation,  and  probably  to  teaching. 
They  dressed  in  a  white  habit,  a  garment  in  shape  something  like 
a  Roman  toga,  and  wore  a  cowl,  which,  when  occasion  required, 
was  used  as  a  covering  for  the  head.  They  slept  in  apartments 
in  common ;  the  priests  in  one,  and  the  lay-brothers  in  another, 
and  when  they  could  afford  it,  had  each  a  straw  mattress,  a 
bolster,  and  a  sheet  to  lie  upon  and  a  blanket  to  cover  themselves 
with. 

This  is  a  synopsis  of  the  ordinary  life  of  a  Trappist,  and  if  we 
substract  a  little  from  the  privileges  and  add  a  little  to  the  depri- 
vations related  therein,  we  will  likely  get  a  proximate  idea  of  the 
every- day  hfe  of  the  Trappists  at  Pigeon  Hills.  An  anecdote 
related  by  Gaillardin  illustrates  their  poverty  and  self-denial  :  A 
priest  from  Conewago,  seeing  the  steward  distribute  bread  for 
supper,  expressed  surprise  at  the  smallness  of  the  portions. 
"Sir!"  said  the  steward  to  him,  "this  bread  is  very  good  and 
most  nourishing;  it  is  not  necessary  to  give  so  much  of  it." 
"  My  Rev.  Father,"  responded  the  priest,  "  you  will  change  your 
mind  about  that  ;  it  is  not  here  like  in  Europe  ;  weights  and 
measures  are  not  known  here." 

As  far  as  we  know,  the  principal  events  that  broke  in  upon  the 


austere  sameness  of  the  monks  during  their  stay  at  Pigeon  Hills, 
were  the  to  and  fro  journeyings  of  Pere  Urban  to  Baltimore,  his 
preliminary  trip  to  Kentucky,  and  according  to  Father  Nerinx, 
the  occasional  trip  of  the  Monastery  wagon  to  Baltimore  and 
return.  Pere  Urban  must  have  spent  much  of  his  time  on  the 
road  and  in  Baltimore.  He  there  met  many  of  the  missionary 
priests  of  the  country,  and  there  probably  first  heard  of  Kentucky. 
The  description  he  got  of  that  country  placed  it  uppermost  in  his 
mind,  and  he  became  enthused  in  the  idea  of  removing  his  colony 
thither.  He,  however,  first  visited  it.  taking  with  him  Brother 
Placide  and  a  native  of  the  country  as  interpreter.  The  lovely 
appearance  of  Kentucky  in  Spring-time,  and  the  persuasive 
appeals  of  Father  Badin,  who  wanted  more  priests  in  his  field  of 
labor,  joined  hands  with  the  zeal  of  Pere  Urban  in  blinding  him 
to  the  great  obstacles  in  the  way  of  removing  a  community  so 
great  a  distance,  over  bad  roads  and  through  thinly  settled 
districts,  and  to  the  drawbacks  which  the  contemplated  new  home 
itself  presented.  He  was  not  long  in  making  up  his  mind  to 
locate  in  Kentucky,  dnd  at  once  returned  for  his  colony,  leaving 
Brother  Placide  behind  to  make  some  desirable  preparations. 

In  the  absence  of  any  reference  to  sickness  or  death  in  the 
colony  by  any  of  the  writers  on  the  subject,  we  may  conclude 
that  its  members  enjoyed  good  health  while  at  Pigeon  Hills. 
This,  unfortunately,  cannot  be  said  of  them  in  locations  sub- 
sequently chosen  by  Pere  Urban.  In  the  face  of  this  fact,  and  in 
the  light  of  our  knowledge  of  the  failure  of  all  his  later  settle- 
ments, we  may  safely  say  that  he  had  better  remained  at  Pigeon 
Hills.  One  of  his  principal  reasons  for  leaving  was  the  inability 
of  the  community  to  support  itself  there.  This,  however,  cannot 
be  charged  to  the  place,  but  must  go  to  the  debit  side  of  Pere 
Urban's  qualifications  as  a  leader.  There  was  plenty  of  good  land 
to  farm,  and  there  were  enough  men  in  the  community  to  till  it  ; 
all  that  was  wanting  was  a  practical  head.  Besides  the  Sulpicians 
and  Father  Moranvillers  seem  to  have  been  willing  to  help  the 
Institution  along  until  it  was  able  to  take  care  of  itself 

The  colony,  when  it  came  to  Pigeon  Hills,  probably  consisted 
of  twenty-one  monks  and  sixteen  lay-people.  Gaillardin  says 
that  twenty-two  members  of  the  order,  priests  and  lay-brothers, 
and  eighteen  lay-men,  students  and  workmen,  came  over  from 


II 

France.  One  lay-brother  and  two  lay-men  deserted  upon  their 
arrival  at  Baltimore.  It  is  not  likely  that  the  order  got  any 
recruits  during  the  short  stay  at  the  Sulpician  College,  though  it 
is  on  record  that  at  least  one  of  the  students  felt  a  call  to  join  it. 
In  his  life  of  Bishop  Flaget,  of  Kentucky,  Rt.  Rev.  M.  J.  Spalding 
states  that  the  then  young  candidate  for  Holy  Orders  looked  upon 
the  arrival  of  the  Trappists  in  Baltimore  as  a  stroke  of  Providence 
in  his  behalf,  and  applied  to  Rev.  Urban  Guillet  for  admission 
into  the  Order  but  for  some  reason  or  other  did  not  avail  himself 
of  the  favorable  answer  received.  While  at  Pigeon  Hills  the 
membership  of  the  community  was  considerably  increased. 
Gaillardin  says  that  the  ranks  of  the  renegades,  who  were  fright- 
ened away  at  the  prospects  of  a  trip  west,  were  more  than  filled 
by  new-comers.  Who  these  novices  were  would  now  be  interest- 
ing to  know  ;  the  only  individual  spoken  of  by  Gaillardin  in  this 
connection  is  an  old  planter  from  San  Domingo,  who  having  lost 
his  reason,  was  taken  in  by  Pere  Urban,  and  by  the  kind  treat- 
ment of  the  monks  and  the  novel,  quiet  life,  was  restored  to 
health.  Father  Nerinx,*  in  one  of  his  letters,  speaks  of  meeting, 
in  the  migration  west,  as  a  member  ot  the  order,  Father  Charles 
Guny,  a  former  Benedictine,  and  his  traveling  companion  across 
the  ocean.  Yet  these  are  but  two.  In  the  same  letter.  Father 
Nerinx,  referring  to  the  departure  of  the  colony  from  Pigeon 
Hills  and  their  trip  through  Pennsylvania,  says  "  the  caravan  con- 
sisted of  thirty-seven  persons,  seven  or  eight  of  whom  were 
priests."  If  his  figures  are  correct  the  recruits  just  about  filled 
the  ranks  of  the  disaffected.  How  long  the  Trappists  remained 
at  Pigeon  Hills,  is  a  mooted  question.  Rev.  Father  Maes  and 
Hon.  Benj.  J.  Webb,  say  one  year.  Gaillardin  gives  July,  1805, 
as  the  time  of  departure  from  Pigeon  Hills  ;  and  Rev.  M.  J. 
Spalding,  the  Fall  of  1805  as  the  time  of  arrival  in  Kentucky. 
Rev.  Father  Xerinx,  who  accompanied  them  through  Pennsyl- 
vania, in  a  letter  dated  May  6th,  1806,  gives  the  date  of  departure 
as  June  loth,  1805,  ^^^  ^s  he  writes  from  personal  knowledge, 
and  at  so  short  an  interval  after  the  event,  he  must  be  accepted 
as  the  most  creditable  witness.     Accepting  then,  as  the  most 

*My  quotations  from  Father  Nerinx's  letters  are  taken  from   Rev. 
Maes'  Life  of  Father  Nerinx. 


12 

likely  time  of  arrival,  that  given  by  Gaillardin  ;  and  as  the  most 
probable  time  of  departure,  that  given  by  Father  Nerinx  ;  the 
stay  of  the  Trappists  at  Pigeon  Hills  was  from  October,  1803,  to 
June  loth,  1805,  or  about  twenty-one  months. 

The  casual  visitor  to  Pigeon  Hills  at  the  present  day  would 
recognize  in  it  nothing  to  apprise  him  of  the  part  it  played  in  the 
early  Catholic  history  of  the  United  States.  The  pious  zeal  of 
Heront,  the  plaintive  midnight  chant  of  the  monks,  the  carnivals 
of  the  Dutch  students  in  the  Trappists'  time,  and  later  the  youth- 
ful hilarity  of  the  seminarians,  never  crystallized  into  monuments; 
and  so  the  place  must  depend  upon  history  for  any  distinction  it 
may  claim.  And  yet  what  prayers  have  gone  up  to  heaven  from 
there  ;  what  penances  practised  ;  what  inspirations  received  ;  what 
good  resolutions  formed !  And  in  antithesis  how  boldly  stands 
out  the  ingratitude  of  those  heartless  adventurers,  if  Gaillardin 
tells  truly,  who  shamelessly  feasted  while  the  monks  were  suffering 
want.  I  cannot  help  but  feel,  however,  that  the  poor  students 
are  made  scapegoats  in  a  certain  measure,  for  the  incompetency 
of  Pere  Urban.  No  doubt  they  did  many  things  which  would 
not  be  tolerated  in  a  well-conducted  school ;  but  then  there  were 
many  mitigating  circumstances.  Some  of  them  likely  left  home 
with  no  higher  motive  than  a  love  of  adventure  ;  they  were  all 
cut  off  from  the  influence  of  friends  and  relatives ;  they  were 
away  from  civilization,  so  to  speak  ;  and  they  had  nothing  to 
occupy  their  minds  but  their  books  and  sports.  Their  young 
healthy  bodies  no  doubt  made  frequent  demands  for  food  through 
craving  appetites.  Their  buoyant  spirits  must  have  often  over- 
flown in  games  and  tricks.  Need  we  wonder  at  cause  for  com- 
plaint !  What  student  could  withstand  the  temptation  of  truancy 
for  example  under  similar  circumstances  ?  With  an  empty  larder 
at  liome  ;  with  fishing  creeks  and  game  forests  that  a  king  might 
envy  close  by  ;  and  with  poor,  half-starved  monks  for  disciplina- 
rians, what  youth  would  not  flee  from  the  dingy,  pent-up,  lore- 
smelling  study  hall,  to  the  free  exhilarating  woods  as  an  amateur 
Nimrod  or  a  practical  admirer  of  Isaak  Walton. 

At  least  all  were  not  recalcitrant.  Many  of  them  afterwards 
braved  the  dangers  and  trials  of  a  trip  to  Kentucky,  Missouri,  and 
Illinois,  and  there  continued  their  studies  under  the  most  adverse 
circumstances.     Such  perseverance  bespeaks  a  better  spirit  than 


13 

deflects  from  the  contrast  between  austere  monks  and  fun-loving 
students. 

Father  Urban's  order,  upon  his  return  from  Kentucky,  to  at 
once  break  up  camp  and  start  for  the  West,  was  received  with 
monastic  submissiveness  by  the  monks,  and  with  commingled 
approval  and  disapproval  by  the  rest  of  the  colony.  Some  of 
the  students  sneaked  off,  leaving  letters  of  explanation  behind. 
Others  demanded  recommendations  to  persons  in  Baltimore,,  and 
then  openly  took  their  departure.  The  hired  workmen  blankly 
refused  to  go  West.  Under  these  discouraging  circumstances, 
says  Gaillardin,  some  of  Pere  Urban's  charitable  deeds  "returned 
to  him  as  bread  cast  upon  the  waters.''  It  was  necessary  to  have 
a  wagon  built,  and  as  the  mechanics  apparently  had  already  left, 
there  was  no  one  to  build  it.  Pere  Urban's  protege,  the  San 
Domingo  Planter,  came  to  his  relief.  Unaided  he  constructed  a 
large  wagon.  This  story,  however,  does  not  fit  in  with  Father 
Nerinx's  reference  to  the  Monastery  wagons,  making  trips  to 
Baltimore  and  return,  nor  with  his  statement  that  on  account 
of  the  slow  progress  of  the  four  wagons  through  Pennsylvania  ; 
he  parted  company  with  the  Trappists.  It  may  be  that  the 
Monastery  wagon  referred  to  by  Father  Nerinx  was  really  owned 
by  Sulpicians,  or  by  Father  Moranvillers,  or  the  Trappists  may 
have  had  three  wagons,  and  required  a  fourth  to  convey  all  that 
they  desired  to  take  with  them. 

The  route  they  traveled  through  Pennsylvania  was  the  old 
state  or  Turnpike  road  by  way  of  Gettysburg,  Chambersburg, 
McConnellstown,  Bedford,  Somerset,  Union  and  Brownsville. 
At  Brownsville  they  sold  their  horses  and  wagon  or  wagons  and 
bought  two  flat-boats,  for  which  they  paid  $12.00.  On  these  they 
placed  themselves  and  goods,  and  floated  down  the  river  to 
Pittsburg.  That  this  is  the  route  they  took  can  scarcely  be 
doubted.  Gaillardin  simply  tells  us  that  they  went  on  foot,  until 
they  got  to  the  Monongahela  River,  where  they  took  flat-boats  ; 
but  Father  Nerinx  says  he  left  them  at  Bedford,  where  he  bought 
a  horse  and  saddle  for  $75.00  and  started  ahead  by  himself 
Now,  as  the  state  road  passed  through  Bedford,  and  as  there  was 
only  one  through  road  in  Southern  Pennsylvania  at  that  time, 
there  can  be  no  doubt  about  the  road  they  traveled.  Brownsville 
was  in  those  days  a  kind  of  port,  at  which  most  travelers  west 


14 

changed  their  mode  of  travel  from  that  by  land  to  water.  Hence, 
we  may  conclude,  that  it  was  there  the  Trappists  bought  their 
flat-boats. 

Probably  about  two  weeks  were  required  to  go  from  Pigeon 
Hills  to  Brownsville.  Stretches  of  twenty  miles  were  made 
between  camping  places.  When  regular  stopping  places  could 
be  reached,  if  even  by  an  extra  effort,  they  put  up  at  an  inn  ;  but 
generally  they  had  to  content  themselves  with  such  comfort  as  a 
barn'  afforded,  or  as  mother  earth  gives  her  children,  under 
Heaven's  diamond  studded  canopy.  In  addition  to  their  usual 
diet  they  were  allowed  butter  according  to  Father  Nerinx  ;  and 
butter,  milk  and  cheese,  according  to  Gaillardin,  the  latter  being 
the  specified  traveling  diet.  Somewhere  between  McConnellstown 
and  Bedford  their  wagon  broke  down,  and  they  were  detained  a 
day  or  two.  It  was  then  that  Father  Nerinx  became  impatient, 
and  after  having  waited  for  them  at  Bedford  a  day  and  a  half, 
started  ahead  by  himself.  While  traveling,  silence  was  observed  as 
far  as  conversation  was  concerned,  although  all  had  the  privilege 
of  talking  with  Father  Nerinx.  The  office  was,  however,  daily 
chanted  and  prayers  were  said  aloud.  What  a  ripple  of  wonder 
and  excitement  must  have  passed  over  the  adjacent  country,  as 
this  procession  of  white-robed  monks,  chanting  and  praying, 
leisurely  moved  along  the  highway. 

The  Monongahela,  to  the  great  disappointment  of  Father 
Urban,  did  not  even  furnish  as  easy  or  as  rapid  a  means  of  transit, 
as  had  the  turnpike.  Instead  of  making  twenty  miles  a  day, 
they  now  with  difficulty  covered  fifteen.  As  the  water  was  quite 
shallow  in  places  the  boats  frequently  stuck  fast  on  sand-banks, 
and  all  hands  had  to  jump  out  and  help  push  them  off".  In  this 
way  they  finally  arrived  at  Pittsburg,  where,  owing  to  the  neces- 
sity of  making  considerable  change  in  their  river  out-fit,  they 
remained  for  some  days. 

The  principal  cause  of  detention  was  the  unloading  and  reload- 
ing of  their  goods,  as  it  was  necessary  to  replace  their  small  boats 
by  larger  ones.  This  exchange  so  drained  the  treasury  that 
Pere  Urban  was  afraid  to  venture  the  further  expense  of  hiring  a 
pilot  and  some  rowers,  as  apparently  was  the  custom  in  traveling 
on  the  Ohio,  and  with  his  monks,  undertook  the  voyage,  not- 
withstanding  their   inexperience.     He,  however,  took  the  pre- 


15 

caution  of  informing  himself  about  the  Ohio  river  by  interviews 
with  some  Pittsburgians,  and  as  a  reference  for  emergencies 
purchased  a  popular  almanac  in  which  its  author  claimed  to 
explicitly  lay  down  all  the  necessary  instructions  for  navigating 
the  Ohio.  Unfortunately,  what  sounded  nice  in  theory  did  not 
work  well  in  practice.  Fallen  trees  obstructed  their  way,  sand- 
banks and  whirlpools  were  encountered,  and  sometimes  the 
swiftness  of  the  current  would  hurl  them  against  the  bank  or  an 
island.  On  one  occasion,  one  of  the  boats  sprang  a  leak  and 
rapidly  began  to  fill.  All  on  board  became  terror-stricken,  and 
cried  for  help.  Their  brothers  on  the  other  boat,  being  too  far 
away  to  bring  them  timely  assistance,  called  to  them  to  pull  for 
the  bank,  which  they  fortunately  succeeded  in  doing.  Landed, 
they  unloaded  by  the  light  of  a  candle,  for  it  was  now  night,  and 
temporarily  plugged  up  the  holes.  On  the  following  day  the 
boat  was  thoroughly  repaired  and  the  amateur  scullers  again  en- 
trusted it  with  their  lives. 

For  si.\  weeks  the  poorly  fed  monks  and  students  rowed  and 
floated  down  the  Ohio,  apparently  running  the  gauntlet  of  death 
safely  at  every  turn  ;  and  yet  gradually  and  surely  falling  into  his 
clutches  by  constantly  inhaling  the  poisonous  effluvia  arising  from 
the  swamps  along  the  banks  of  the  river.  When  they  finally 
arrived  at  Louisville  in  the  early  part  of  September,  1805,  all 
hands  were  sick,  and  some  unto  death. 

A  most  cordial  reception  awaited  them.  People  from  all  over 
the  country  flocked  to  the  landing  place  with  their  wagons 
anxious  to  render  aid.  Those  who  arrived  first,  loaded  up  the 
baggage,  and  hauled  it  to  its  destination.  Later  comers  finding 
no  more  baggage,  contended  with  each  other  for  the  privilege  of 
conveying  the  monks.  Soon  baggage,  monks  and  all  were  safely 
landed  at  a  farm  house  on  Pottinger  Creek,  in  the  northern  part 
of  Nelson  Co.,  about  thirty  miles  south  of  Louisville,  about  ten 
north  of  Bardstown,  and  about  a  mile  from  Holy  Cross  Church, 
where  Father  Baden  then  had  his  headquarters.  The  property 
belonged  to  a  pious  lady,  who  offered  the  use  of  it  to  the  Trap- 
pists,  as  long  as  they  might  wish  to  remain,  reserving  for  her  own 
use  only,  the  product  of  every  fourth  or  fifth  fruit  tree.  Gaillardin 
describes  the  house  as  a  frame  building,  ornamented  by  a  portico, 
and  says  there  were  several  log  houses,  close  by  which  could  be 


i6 

used  as  work-houses.  Once  at  the  house,  the  ovation  began. 
Every  farmer  had  come  with  his  offering,  bringing  flour,  Indian 
corn,  vegetables,  potatoes  and  even  pouhry.  Everything  was  in 
abundance.  The  trees  in  the  orchard  adjoining  the  house,  were 
laden  with  fruit,  and  brother  Placide's  garden  was  in  a  most 
flourishing  condition.  All  were  made  comfortable  and  poverty  for 
once,  had  to  make  a  bed-fellow  of  plenty.  But  comfort  and 
abundance  could  not  stay  the  ravages  of  disease,  nor  shut  out  the 
grim  visage  of  death.  Of  the  entire  community,  but  two  could 
present  themselves  in  choir,  a  religious  and  a  postulant,  and  one 
of  these,  the  religious  had  hemorrhages- from  Ihe  lungs.  Father 
Baden  took  two  of  the  priests,  who  were  most  dangerously  ill, 
namely.  Fathers  Dominic  and  Basile,  to  his  own  house,  and 
lavished  the  greatest  care  on  them.  They  however,  both  soon 
died.  At  the  farm  house  all  recovered,  except  Father  Robert, 
whose  demise  followed  closely  upon  that  of  his  brothers.  Poor 
Father  Urban,  himself  sick,  was  almost  heart-broken  at  the  loss 
of  his  priests.  When  the  news  of  the  first  death  was  brought  to 
him,  he  tried  to  bear  up  under  the  affliction,  but  when  two  days 
later,  he  heard  of  Father  Basile's  death,  he  turned  his  face  to  the 
wall,  and  gave  vent  to  his  grief  in  tears. 

Gaillardin  ascribes  the  dreadful  visitation  to  imprudence,  in 
eating  all  kinds  of  fruits  after  long  exposure,  and  want,  on  one 
hand,  and  on  the  other,  to  the  too  sudden  change  from  the 
hardships  and  fatigue  of  travel  to  the  ordinary  austere  life  of  a 
Trappist.  He  especially  exonerates  the  climate.  Father  Nerinx 
in  his  common  sense  way  of  lookmg  at  things  comes  near  the 
truth.  He  says,  had  he  come  down  the  Ohio,  as  the  Trappists 
did,  he  would  likely  have  been  sick  with  the  same  fever. 

The  clouds  that  hung  over  the  colony  at  Pottinger's  Creek, 
after  its  arrival,  were  soon  dispersed. 

On  the  loth  of  October,  1805,  re-info rcements  arrived  in  the  per- 
sons of  Father  Maria  Joseph,  four  other  religious,  and  a  priest  from 
Canada,  who  came  to  take  the  habit.  Sorrow  at  once  gave  place 
to  joy,  and  discouragement  to  confidence.  A  school  was  opened, 
and  many  young  men  of  the  country  availed  themselves  of  the 
opportunity,  to  get  an  education,  even  though  they  could  spare, 
but  a  few  hours  a  day  from  their  work.  Over  twenty  children 
says  Father  Nerinx,  were  adopted,  and  the  monks  bound  them- 


selves  to  educate  them  and  sustain  them,  until  they  were  twenty- 
one  years  of  age,  without  recompense.  With  mental  training 
was  combined  mechanical;  every  boy  having  to  learn  a  trade,  and 
at  the  end  of  the  term,  the  boys  were  to  have  the  choice  of  going 
out  into  the  world,  or  becoming  postulants.  The  only  obstacle 
in  the  way  of  the  success  of  the  school,  was  ihe  inability  of  the 
monks  to  speak  English.  Yet  teachers  and  scholars  struggled 
along  with  admirable  forbearance. 

As  yet,  Father  Urban  had  not  chosen  a  permanent  location. 
Plenty   of  land   had   been    offered,    but   it   seems   none   suited. 
Toward  the  latter  part  of  1806,  he  heard  of  a  fine  tract  of  land 
for  sale,  on  Casey  Creek,  in  Casey  County.     He  purchased  it,  and 
sent  a  colony  to  take  charge  of  it  under  the  leadership  of  Father 
Maria  Joseph.     Father   Nerinx   says    the  tract    contained   1500 
acres  of  land,  and  cost  $6000.     He  describes  it  as  a  fine  piece  of 
land,  well  situated,   and  well  watered  by  streams,  and  locates  it 
34  miles  from  Father  Baden's  Plantation.    The  colony,  consisting 
of  thirteen  members,  three  of  whom  were  Belgians,  one  a  Rev. 
Mr.  Doncke,  and  another  Mr.  Henry  Rysselman,  who  later  be- 
came a  Jesuit  brother,  left  Pottinger  Creek,  just  before  Christmas. 
The  weather  was  extremely  cold,  and  the  trip  to  the  new  home 
difficult,  on  account  of  the  wildness  of  the  country  through  which 
they  had  to  pass.     When  they  lit  their  camp-fires  at  night,  says 
Gaillardin,  all  kinds  of  wild  beasts  prowled  around  attracted  by 
the  light  and  warmth.     The  hardships  did  not  end  with  the  trip 
itself     There  was  little,  if  any  clear  land  on  the  tract,  and  it  is 
questionable,  whether  there  was  even  a  house  upon  it.     When 
Father  Nerinx  visited  the  place,  in  1807,  he  found  fourteen  monks 
"  lodged  in  a  double-frame  cabin  about  as  large  as  a  ten-horse 
stable,"  to  use  his  own  words,  and  which  was  not  even  water- 
proof    Whether  or  not  they  built  it  themselves  he  does  not  say. 
As  the  warmth  of  Spring  thawed  out  the  ground,  and  they  began 
to  dig  up  the  land  which  they  had  cleared  during  the  Winter, 
snakes  of  all  kinds,  but  particularly  rattle-snakes,  appeared  in 
great  numbers.     In  two  days,  says  Gaillardin,  they  killed  more  • 
than  800.     Wolves,  too,  kept  prowling  about.     Yet  in  spite  of 
all  obstacles,  the  new  settlement  prospered  under  the  spirited 
leadership  of  Father  Maria  Joseph,  who  brought  to  his  monastic 
life  the  endurance  and  resoluteness  to  which  he  had  been  inured 


as  a  grenadier  in  the  French  army.  At  the  time  of  Father 
Nerinx's  visit,  the  monks  were  already  engaged  in  building  a 
saw-mill.  Their  comforts,  if  one  can  speak  of  the  comforts  of  a 
Trappist,  it  is  true,  were  as  yet  very  few.  Father  Nerinx  says 
"the  dormitory,  refectory  and  church,"  were  all  in  one,  and  the 
only  other  rooms  in  the  house  were  *an  apartment  for  the  lay- 
brothers  and  a  small  place  for  storing  provisions.  The  members 
of  the  community  all  slept  on  the  bare  floor.  Father  Nerinx  and 
his  guide  were  given  the  storage  room  and  Father  Nerinx  had  a 
bag  of  oats  to  sleep  upon.  In  a  short  time,  however,  great 
improvements  were  made,  and  Casey  Creek  was  so  transformed, 
according  to  Gaillardin,  as  to  merit  the  appellation  of  the  place 
of  rest.  A  chapel  was  built  and  a  small  congregation  gathered 
together  from  the  thinly  settled  country  around,  and  the  name  of 
St.  Bernard  given  to  the  parish  thus  formed.  Only  seven  or 
eight  Catholic  families  lived  in  close  enough  proximity  to  attend 
mass  there,  and  they  had  formerly  gone  to  St.  Mary's,  in  Marion 
County.  Some  of  the  Protestant  families,  however,  who  lived 
close  by  and  who  had  probably  no  church  of  their  own,  attended 
services  in  the  chapel.  In  this  way  there  was  generally  a  good 
attendance  at  mass  both  on  Sundays  and  Feast  days. 

In  1807,  at  the  time  of  Father  Nerinx's  visit,  the  community 
at  Casey  Creek  had  received  two  novices,  one  an  Irishman  and 
the  other  an  American,  and  one  member  had  likely  gone  back  to 
Pottinger  Creek,  for  Father  Nerinx  says  they  then  numbered 
fourteen  people  at  Casey  Creek.  How  long  Father  Maria  Joseph 
and  his  colony  remained  at  Casey  Creek  is  not  positively  known, 
as  Father  Nerinx  does  not  refer  to  the  place  after  1807  ;  and 
Gaillardin  says  nothing  about  the  abandonment  although  he  leads 
us  to  infer  that  it  was  not  before  1809.  Inasmuch  as  Pere  Urban 
consulted  Father  Maria  Joseph  about  moving  to  Louisiana,  we 
may  conclude  that  both  settlements  were  kept  up  until  the 
departure  from  Kentucky.  Indirect  evidence  of  the  same  fact  is 
the  frequent  allusions  which  Mr.  Henry  Rysselman  is  said  to 
have  made  in  after  life  to  his  residence  at  Casey  Creek,  as  a 
Trappist,  until  1809. 

In  regard  to  the  mother  colony  at  Pottinger  there  is  little  more 
to  be  said,  and  nothing,  from  a  wordly  point  of  view,  that  would 
add  lustre  to  the  name  Les  Trappistes.    Judging  from  the  tone  of 


19 

Father  Nerinx's  letters  to  Bishop  Carroll,  its  history  can  be  read 
in  the  words  want^  patient  suffering  and  failure.  Father  Urban 
had  not  yet  learned  wisdom  nor  forsaken  his  Bohemian  ways. 
He  was  ever  looking  out  for  a  good  location  and  never  making 
use  of  present  opportunities.  Whether  or  not  he  ever  owned 
land  at  Pottinger  Creek  I  have  not  discovered,  but  probably  he 
did  not.  The  farm  on  which  the  colony  was  located  was  at  their 
command  as  long  as  they  wished  to  remain,  and  Gaillardin 
positively  states  that  they  did  not  own  it. 

The  graves  of  five  priests  and  three  lay-brothers  in  the  church- 
yard adjoining  Holy  Cross  Church  are  a  sad  commentary  on  the 
four  years'  sojourn  of  the  Trappists  in  Kentucky.  Who  the  two 
additional  priests,  and  the  three  lay-brothers  were,  and  when 
they  died,  is  not  stated.  A  reference  to  the  records  of  Holy 
Cross  Church,  or  to  the  tombstones,  if  there  were  any,  might 
reveal  the  names  and  dates.  The  school  was  likely  the  redeem- 
ing feature  of  the  settlement  at  Pottinger  ;  for  the  influence, 
which  its  light  exerted  upon  the  future  generations  of  Kentucky, 
is  acknowledged  by  Hon.  Benjamin  J.  Webb,  in  his  "Century  of 
Catholicity  in  Kentucky."  It,  however,  had  the  great  difficulty 
to  contend  with,  of  a  difference  of  languages  between  teacher  and 
pupil.  The  monks  did  not  learn  English  readily,  and  even  after 
many  years'  residence  in  the  country  spoke  it  with  great  difficulty. 
To  overcome  this  obstacle  in  the  way  of  the  usefulness  of  the 
Order,  was  the  Gordian  knot,  which  constantly  challenged  Pere 
Urban's  ingenuity.  Need  we  wonder,  then,  that  while  on  a  busi- 
ness trip  to  Baltimore,  in  1808,  he  was  persuaded,  by  the  eloquent 
tongue  of  a  son  of  Erin  named  Mulhamphy,  to  again  change  his 
base  of  operations  and  migrate  to  Louisiana,  *  where  his  own 
language  was  spoken,  and  he  would  receive  encouragement  and 
protection  from  the  government.  Mulhamphy  offered  him  a 
house  in  Louisiana  as  a  gift,  if  it  suited  the  purposes  of  the 
Trappists,  and  if  not,  at  least  as  a  temporary  home.  Pere  Urban 
triumphantly  returned  to  Kentucky  ;  laid  the  matter  before  his 
community;  took  counsel  with  Father  Maria  Joseph  and  with 
him  started  on  a  visit  to  Louisiana  in  November,  1808. 

*It  must  be  remembered  that  at  the  time  referred  to  here,  Louisiana 
took  in  nearly  all  that  portion  of  country  west  of  the  Mississippi. 


20 

We  can  readily  imag^ine  what  a  trip  through  the  west  implied 
at  that  time,  especially  if  taken  in  Winter.  Yet  Fathers  Urban 
and  Maria  Joseph  arrived  at  Louisville  before  Christmas.  Both 
were  delighted  with  the  prospects  in  Louisiana.  According  to 
Gaillardin,  an  old  Parisian  named  Jarrot,  who  had  formerly  been 
a  steward  with  the  Sulpicians  in  Baltimore,  and  who  now  lived  at 
Cahokia,  a  small  town  in  Illinois,  about  five  miles  south-east  of 
St.  Louis,  offered  Pere  Urban  a  large  prairie  enclosed  by  a  dense 
forest,  and  situated  about  six  miles  from  St.  Louis.  It  was  then 
called  the  cantine,  and  contained  excellent  land  but  was  most 
unhealthy.  The  Jesuit  Fathers  had  occupied  it  at  one  time  and 
had  a  church  there,  but  had  to  give  it  up  on  account  of  the 
fatality  of  the  climate.  In  olden  times  it  had  been  an  Indian 
burial  ground,  and  it  was  dotted  over  with  seven  or  eight 
pyramids  built  of  earth  and  measuring  about  i6o  feet  in  circum- 
ference, and  ICO  feet  in  height.  At  present  the  place  is  called 
Monks'  Mound.  Father  Urban  accepted  M.  Jarrot's  offer,  and 
having  completed  his  business  afifairs  in  St.  Louis,  prepared  for 
his  return  trip  to  Kentucky.  Meanwhile  Father  Maria  Joseph 
had  already  initiated  himself  in  missionary  work  for  which  he  saw 
a  good  field  in  St.  Louis,  and  for  which  he  had  a  special  taste. 
He  arrived  in  St.  Louis  on  the  vigil  of  Christmas  and  announced 
at  once  that  he  would  celebrate  midnight  mass.  The  happy 
tidings  spread  rapidly,  and  Father  Maria  Joseph,  when  the  hour 
for  celebration  arrived,  found  himself  in  the  midst  of  quite  a  large 
congregation.  The  unfortunate  people  were  overjoyed  at  the 
sight  of  a  priest  as  they  had  been  left  without  one  for  some  time 
on  account  of  the  wickedness  of  many  among  them  who  had 
mobbed  and  driven  out  the  Jesuit  fathers.  *  Gaillardin  tells  a 
story  illustrative  of  the  perversity  of  the  people  of  St.  Louis  at 
that  time.  He  says  a  man  sold  his  wife  for  a  bottle  of  whisky  ; 
the  purchaser  sold  her  for  a  horse  ;  and  in  a  short  time  she  was 
again  sold  for  a  pair  of  oxen.  Yet  Father  Maria  Joseph  was 
kindly  received.  He  was  implored  to  remain  and  was  asked  to 
take  the  last  sacraments  to  the  sick.  Crowds  of  people 
accompanied   the   Holy  Viaticum  with   pious   reverence. 

*  Gaillardin  says  that  some  of  the  Jesuit  Fathers  were  murdered  and 
others  tied  to  logs  and  floated  down  the  Mississippi, 


21 

As  Father  Maria  Joseph  had,  however,  come  on  a  visit  only, 
he  could  not  remain.  He  promised  to  return  soon,  and  departed 
to  join  Father  Urban.  They  started  on  the  return  trip  in  January, 
1809. 

If  the  journey  out  had  been  difficult,  that  going  back  was 
much  more  so.  Winter  had  now  fully  set  in,  deep  snows  had 
fallen,  roads  were  drifted  shut,  and  in  many  places  bridges  had 
been  swept  away,  and  the  ice  was  not  strong  enough  to  carry. 
In  these  emergencies  Father  Maria  Joseph  resorted  to  a  trick, 
which  he  had  learned  from  the  natives,  namely  felling  a  tree 
across  the  stream  and  using  it  for  a  bridge.  But  as  his  traveling 
companion  was  somewhat  stiffened  by  diseases,  he  invariably  had 
to  carry  all  the  baggage  and  provisions  over  first,  and  then  return 
to  help  him  across.  Sometimes  streams  had  to  be  crossed  again 
and  again,  at  others  freshets  had  suddenly  so  swollen  creeks  as 
to  make  them  impassible,  and  the  travelers  had  to  go  around 
them.  Finally  after  much  patient  suffering  and  toil,  they  arrived 
at  Pottinger  Creek. 

The  mandate  at  once  was  given  to  prepare  for  the  journey  to 
Louisiana.  It  being  deemed  more  convenient  to  travel  by  water 
than  by  land,  the  first  thing  requisite  was  boats;  and  as  Pere 
Urban  did  not  wish  to  undergo  the  expense  of  hiring  professional 
boat-builders,  he  set  to  work  all  the  brothers,  who  had  any 
practical  knowledge  of  carpentry.  Among  them  was  Brother 
Palemon,  an  Irishman  and  an  ex-colonel,  probably  the  Irishman  of 
whom  Father  Nerinx  speaks  as  having  joined  the  Order  at  Casey 
Creek. 

About  nine  miles  from  the  monastery  was  Salt  River,  which 
flows  into  the  Ohio.  Though  a  small  stream,  it  sometimes  suddenly 
swells  into  an  immense  river,  and  as  suddenly  collapses.  The 
Trappists  decided  to  build  their  boats  on  its  banks,  hoping  to  be 
ready  with  the  rise  which  was  then  expected,  and  to  float  down 
to  the  Ohio,  on  its  borrowed  impulse.  In  order  to  push  the 
work  as  rapidly  as  possible,  a  temporary  cabin  was  put  up,  and 
the  workmen  camped  at  the  place,  returning  to  the  monastery 
only  on  Sunday.  The  task  was  soon  completed  and  the  flood 
came.  Farmers  flocked  around  to  see  them  embark,  and  many 
accompanied  them  as  far  as  the  Ohio. 

According   to  Archbishop    Spalding,    Father   Urban   did   not 


22 


accompany  the  colony  down  the  Ohio,  but  crossed  the  Country 
to  St.  Louis,  hoping  to  arrive  there  in  time  to  send  Canadian 
voyag-eurs  down  the  river  to  meet  his  brethren  at  the  junction  and 
row  the  boats  up  the  Mississippi. 

When  the  monks  arrived  at  Cairo,  they  looked  in  vain  for  the 
boatmen,  and  hence  had  to  debark  and  wait.  They  camped  on 
the  Illinois  side  of  the  river,  says  Spalding,  and  built  a  temporary 
cabin  which  they  occupied  for  three  weeks.  Gaillardin  says  they 
waited  eight  days,  and  erected  an  altar  under  a  large  tree  on 
which  mass  was  daily  celebrated  and  before  which  the  office  was 
chanted.  He  dwells  at  some  length  upon  the  presence  of  the 
astonished  Indians  in  their  savage  costume  and  with  their  war 
paint  on.  Tired  waiting  and  fearing  that  the  promised  aid  might 
not  arrive,  the  monks  at  last,  says  Archbishop  Spalding,  pre- 
pared to  ascend  the  river  by  themselves.  They  fixed  masts  on 
their  boats  and  rigged  them  out  with  sail ;  as  they  were  ready  to  start 
the  boatmen  appeared.  To  the  practised  eye  of  the  voyageurs  it 
was  at  once  apparent  that  the  improvised  sailing  vessels  could 
not  ascend  the  Mississippi.  The  masts  and  sails  had  therefore  to 
be  taken  down.  Even  rowing  was  impracticable,  and  the  boats 
had  to  be  towed  by  ropes.  In  this  tedious  manner  they  finally 
reached  St.  Louis  one  month  after  leaving  the  junction. 

At  St.  Louis  Father  Maria  Joseph  and  the  colony  parted 
company,  the  former  at  once  assuming  his  missionary  duties,  and 
the  latter  proceeding  to  the  location,  which  Pere  Urban  had 
chosen  for  them.  According  to  Gaillardin  this  was  Monks' 
Mound,  which  has  already  been  described,  and  according  to 
Archbishop  Spalding,  it  was  a  farm  near  Florissant  in  the 
northern  part  of  St.  Louis  County,  Missouri.  Spalding  says  the 
monks  continued  their  slow  progress  up  the  Mississippi  River  to 
its  junction  with  the  Missouri,  and  then  up  the  Missouri  to 
Florissant,  where  they  landed.  At  the  entrance  of  the  Missouri 
into  the  Mississippi  the  current  was  very  strong,  and  the  ropes 
broke.  None  but  the  disabled  were  in  the  boats  at  the  time,  and 
the  monks  on  shore  had  to  helplessly  look  on  while  their  sick 
brethren  were  rapidly  carried  down  the  river.  After  twenty-four 
hours,  however,  the  boats  were  checked  in  their  wild  progress, 
and  the  difficult  ascent  again  begun.  At  last,  they  debarked  and 
proceeded  to  the  farm,     Here  they  remained  until   1810,  when 


23 

they  removed  to  Monks'  Mound.  It  is  strange  that  Gaillardin 
says  nothing  about  this  settlement.  Archbishop  Spalding  got  his 
information  from  an  old  gentleman,  who  had  lived  with  the 
Trappists  for  many  years,  and  who  therefore  ought  to  be  a  good 
witness.  Yet  as  he  depended  on  memory  for  the  reminiscence  he 
gave,  he  must  not  be  too  readily  accepted.  Besides  he  may 
have  confounded  the  missionary  work  of  Father  Maria  Joseph, 
and  possibly  some  of  his  brethren  at  Florissant,  with  a  location  of 
the  entire  colony.  Father  Mariajoseph's  memoirs  might  throw 
some  light  on  the  subject. 

At  Monks'  Mound,  the  Trappists  tried  hard  to  make  a  per- 
manent estabhshment.  They  built  seventeen  little  cabins,  one  for 
a  church,  one  for  a  chapel,  one  for  a  refectory,  and  one  indeed 
for  every  purpose  that  might  suggest  itself.  These  buildings 
were  probably  of  logs  and  very  primitive  in  their  construction, 
Gaillardin  says  the  place  looked  like  an  army's  camp,  from  which 
we  may  infer  that  the  cabins  were  very  small.  The  history  of 
this  setdement  is  the  same  as  that  at  Pigeon  Hills,  Pottinger  and 
Casey  Creek,  only  more  gloomy  in  proportion  as  it  was  farther 
removed  from  civilization,  and  as  the  poor  monks  were  more 
worn  out  by  disease  and  hardships.  Though  the  community 
remained  there  three  or  four  years,  nothing  is  positively  known  of 
their  doings,  except  that  they  strictly  observed  their  rules. 
Gaillardin,  who  is  usually  prolix  in  his  descriptions,  dismisses 
the  subject  with  the  statement  in  one  place,  that  they  went  there 
and  built  a  number  of  cabins,  and  in  another  that  the  settlement 
was  a  failure.  Archbishop  Spalding,  too,  has  scarcely  anything  to 
say  about  the  place.  He  tells  us  that  they  were  there  until 
March,  1813,  and  that  during  their  stay  two  priests  and  five  lay- 
brothers  were  consigned  to  their  final  resting  place.  Had  Father 
Nerinx  been  near,  we  would  know  much  more.  It  was  the 
ambition  of  Pere  Urban  to  carry  the  Gospel  to  the  Indians;  but  in 
this,  as  in  all  other  undertakings  in  America,  he  failed.  Had  he 
been  able  to  maintain  his  institution  at  Monks'  Mound,  he  might 
finally  have  accomplished  what  he  desired,  for  the  Indians  were 
his  next  door  neighbors,  and  were  quite  friendly  with  the  monks. 
It  was,  however,  impossible  for  the  community  to  support  itself, 
and  besides,  its  members  were  rapidly  dying  off.  When  the 
colony  broke  up  in  the  Spring  of  1813,  there  were  likely  not 


24 

more  than  nine  or  ten  members  left.  How  many  had  come  from 
Kentucky,  and  whether  any  members  had  entered  the  Order  at 
Monks'  Mound  is  not  known.  We  are  equally  in  the  dark  about 
what  became  of  the  boys,  whom  the  monks  had  pledged  them- 
selves to  educate  at  Pottinger.  Likely  they  remained  with  their 
parents  and  friends  in  Kentucky.  The  command  to  break  up 
camp  at  Monks'  Mound  came  from  Dom  Augustine,  the  Superior 
of  the  entire  Order,  who  had  arrived  in  New  York  in  the  begin- 
ning of  1813,  and  who  had  been  informed  of  the  condition  of  Father 
Urban's  colony.  Gaillardin  says  that  Dom  Augustine  directed 
Father  Urban  to  join  Father  Vincent  de  Paul's  colony  in  Mary- 
land. He  tells  us  nothing  about  the  departure  from  Illinois,  nor 
about  the  trip  East,  and  indeed  does  not  again  mention  Father 
Urban's  name,  until  he  speaks  of  the  final  departure  of  the 
Trappists  from  the  United  States.  Archbishop  Spalding  enters 
into  some  details  about  the  colony's  exit  from  Illinois,  its  trip 
down  the  Mississippi  and  up  the  Ohio,  but  consigns  it  to  oblivion 
at  Pittsburg.  He  tells  us  that  the  property  at  Monks'  Mound 
was  disposed  of,  that  some  of  the  lay-brothers  remained  in  the 
West,  that  Pere  Urban  and  his  brethren  descended  the  Mississippi 
in  a  keel-boat,  and  that  in  ascending  the  Ohio,  they  encountered 
a  great  flood  and  almost  fell  into  the  hands  of  pirates.  The 
information,  however,  that  we  would  most  like  to  have,  namely, 
how  many  monks  went  East,  who  they  were,  and  whither  they 
went  from  Pittsburg,  he  fails  to  give  us.  Father  Vincent  de 
Paul,  in  his  memoirs,  states  that  Pere  Urban  and  his  brethren 
joined  his  colony  in  Maryland,  shortly  before  its  departure  for 
New  York,  which  was  sometime  in  the  early  part  of  18 14. 

A  tradition  among  the  people  of  the  northern  part  of  Cambria 
County,  Pennsylvania,  would  lead  us  to  believe  that  Pere  Urban 
and  his  comrades  did  not  go  directly  to  Maryland,  but  made  one 
final  effort  to  locate  in  Rev.  Dr.  Gallitzen's  district.  That  the 
Trappists  had  a  settlement  in  Cambria  County  cannot  be  doubted, 
as  a  number  of  men  who  saw  them  there  give  testimony  of  the 
fact.  There  is,  however,  no  known  record  of  the  matter. 
Father  Lamden's  statement,  that  Pere  Urban's  colony  was  in 
Cambria  County,  before  it  located  at  Pigeon  Hills  is  undoubtedly 
erroneous.  Possibly  Dr.  Gallitzen's  letters  may  throw  some 
light  on  the  subject  at  some  future  time.  For  the  present  we 
must  be  satisfied  with  tradition  and  speculation. 


25 

Some  years  ago  two  very  old  gentlemen  of  Cambria  County 
gave  me  their  reminiscences  about  the  Trappists  in  Northern 
Cambria.  Although  many  of  their  statements  are  contradictory, 
some  noteworthy  information  is  scattered  through  them, 

Mr.  Bernard  Byrnes,  one  of  the  old  gentlemen,  said  that  the 
Trappists  came  to  Northern  Cambria,*  in  1811  and  left  in  March, 
1S13,  and  that  they  came  from  Loretto  to  their  location,  near  the 
present  site  of  Carrolltown;  that  they  were  four  or  five  in  number, 
one  of  whom  was  a  priest,  and  that  they  spoke  German  ;  that 
the  brothers  were  low,  heavy-set,  awkward  men,  the  priest  tall, 
rather  heavy  and  likew'ise  awkward,  and  that  all  were  of  a  dark 
complexion;  that  they  ate  but  two  meals  a  day,  partook  of  neither 
meat  nor  butter,  but  subsisted  on  a  paste  made  of  flour  and 
water,  and  on  boiled  potatoes  and  turnips  ;  that  his  father  and 
others  gave  them  oats  wherewith  to  feed  a  cow^  which  they  had 
brought  with  them  ;  that  they  located  in  the  woods,  on  a  small 
spot  of  clear  land,  about  the  size  of  a  large  potato  patch,  and 
that  they  planted  some  potatoes  around  the  house  ;  that  the  men 
in  the  neighborhood  were  allowed  to  hear  mass  in  their  chapel, 
but  not  the  women,  and  that  he  himself  frequently  heard  mass  in 
their  house ;  that  the  altar  in  their  chapel  was  very  plain,  and 
made  of  boards  ;  that  the  priest  often  traveled  backward  and 
forward  between  the  settlement  and  Loretto,  and  frequently 
stopped  with  his  father  over  night.  Mr.  Luke  McGuire,  the 
other  old  gentleman,  stated  that  the  Trappists  came  to  their 
location  in  Cambria  County  in  1814,  and  remained  there  a  few 
years  ;  that  they  were  five  in  number;  that  they  could  not  speak 
English,  but  spoke  French  ;  that  they  lived  in  a  wooden  house, 
to  help  build  which.  Dr.  Gallitzen  had  sent  members  of  his 
parish  ;  that  they  were  accessory  to  their  own  deaths,  as  they 
exposed  themselves  to  cold  and  wet ;  that  they  started  back  to 
France,  and  that  he  hauled  some  of  their  baggage  and  one  sick 
brother  as  far  as  Bedford,  where  he  left  them  with  a  Frenchman  ; 
that  he  had  a  letter  from  Dr.  Gallitzen  to  Father  Hayden  at 
Bedford ;  that  when  they  got  to  Bedford,  they  found  the  town  full 
of  soldiers  on  their   way  to  Erie  ;  that  the  Luthers  who  were 

*  The  land  on  which  the  Trappists  located  in  Cambria  County  be- 
longed at  the  time  to  Jacob  Downing,  a  merchant  of  Philadelphia. 


26 

other  old  settlers  of  Cambria  County,  hauled  some  of  their 
baggage,  boxed  up,  to  Loretto  in  sleds ;  and  that  the  sick  brother 
was  afterwards  reported  to  have  died  on  the  way,  between  Bed- 
ford and  Lancaster,  two  more  brothers  to  have  died  at  Lancaster, 
and  all  three  to  have  been  buried  there. 

Both  old  gentlemen  related  interesting  anecdotes  about  the 
monks,  which  I  must  omit.  What  I  have  cited  from  my  notes, 
taken  almost  word  for  word,  as  related  by  them,  is  sufficient  to 
place  beyond  dispute  the  fact  that  the  Trappists  were  in  the 
northern  part  of  Cambria  County,  Pennsylvania,  and  that  they 
were  there  sometime  between  1811  and  18 14.  For  their  identifi- 
cation nothing  is  wanting  but  recorded  evidence.  I,  myself,  feel 
morally  certain  that  they  were  Pere  Urban  and  his  brethren. 
The  restless  disposition  of  the  priest,  as  described  by  Mr.  Byrnes, 
exactly  fits  the  character  of  Pere  Urban  ;  and  the  broken-down, 
sickly  condition  of  the  brothers,  implied  in  Mr.  McGuire's  account 
of  their  departure  from  Cambria  County,  is  what  we  would 
expect  in  men  who  had  undergone  years  of  hardship.  But  the 
strongest  argument  of  all  is  the  fact  that  it  could  have  been  no 
one  else.  The  whereabouts  of  all  the  Trappists  who  had  come 
to  America,  can  be  accounted  for  between  the  Spring  of  18 13 
and  the  early  part  of  1814,  except  that  of  Pere  Urban  and  his 
brothers.  They  left  Monks'  Mound  in  March,  1S13,  and  came 
to  Father  Vincent  de  Paul's  settlement  in  Maryland,  in  18 14. 
At  the  longest,  it  ought  not  to  have  taken  more  than  two  months 
to  make  the  trip.  It  is  quite  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the 
interim  was  spent  on  the  Allegheny  Mountains.  Dr.  Gallitzen 
may  have  accidently  met  them  in  Pittsburg  and  taken  them  to 
his  mountain  home  ;  or  the  little  band  may  have  sought  out  the 
great  missionary.  Princess  Gallitzen,  the  reverend  doctor's 
mother,  had  been  a  friend  and  protectress  of  the  Trappists  during 
the  troublesome  times  in  Europe, — how  natural  for  this  stray 
remnant  of  the  refugee  colony  to  seek  out  the  illustrious  son  of 
their  former  benefactress. 

The  history  of  the  Trappist  settlement  in  Cambria  County  is  a 
fitting  epilogue  to  the  story  of  Pere  Urban's  work  in  America. 
Its  very  obscurity  adapts  it  to  its  place.  Much  of  what  Messrs. 
Byrnes  and  McGuire  have  told  us  about  it  was  no  doubt  dimmed 
by  time  and  colored  by  imagination.     Their  dates  and  figures, 


27 

though  probably  wrong,  serve,  nevertheless,  as  landmarks  by 
which  we  may  find  the  truth.  Mr.  McGuire's  reference  to  the 
Soldiers  in  Bedford,  gives  a  reliable  clew  to  the  time  of  departure, 
placing  that  event  in  the  latter  part  of  1813  or  the  beginning  of 
1 8 14.  Though  Messrs.  McGuire  and  Byrnes  both  state  that  the 
Trappists  were  in  Cambria  County  two  or  three  years,  it  is 
probable  that  they  were  there  only  from  about  May  until 
December  in  18 13.  Mr.  McGuire  says  they  came  in  Spring,  and 
both  he  and  Mr.  Byrnes  state  that  they  left  in  cold  weather. 

The  report  preserved  for  us  by  Mr.  McGuire  about  the  death 
of  the  three  brothers  and  their  burial  at  Lancaster,  must  have 
had  its  origin  in  the  vivid  imagination  of  some  sympathetic 
individual  who  had  observed  their  delicate  health.  It  is  not  likely 
that  the  monks  even  passed  through  Lancaster.  Mr.  McGuire 
left  them  at  Bedford,  and  as  they  were  on  their  way  to  Maryland 
the  most  direct  and  convenient  road  would  have  lead  them  much 
south  of  Lancaster.  What  sad  thoughts  must  have  pervaded 
Pere  Urban's  mind  as  he  repassed  the  same  road,  with  his  small, 
sickly  band,  over  which  he  had  lead  the  large  stout-hearted  colony 
nine  years  before.  According  to  Father  Vincent  de  Paul's 
memoirs,  he  arrived  in  St.  Mary's  County,  Maryland,  sometime 
in  the  early  part  of  1814.  Nothing  is  said  about  the  number  of 
men  he  brought  with  him,  nor  about  their  condition.  Both 
himself  and  his  men  were  merged  in  Pere  Vincent  de  Paul's 
colony  and  we  do  not  again  hear  his  name  mentioned  by  anyone 
until  the  final  departure  from  New  York. 

Pere  Vincent  de  Paul,  according  to  his  own  memoirs,  set  sail 
from  Bordeaux  on  June  nth,  181 2,  and  arrived  at  Boston  on 
August  6th.  Strange  to  say,  Gaillardin  gives  the  time  of  arrival 
as  June  6th,  181 1.  This  is  probably  a  misprint,  for  Gaillardin 
appears  to  be  a  most  careful  writer.  Pere  Vmcent  brought  with 
him  three  members  of  his  order,  one  sister  and  two  brothers. 
The  intention  had  been  to  bring  five  sisters  who  were  to  introduce 
into  America  the  female  branch  of  the  Order,  but  only  one  was 
successful  in  getting  a  passport  out  of  France.  The  little  band 
was  kindly  received  at  Boston  by  the  Pastor  of  the  town, 
Monsieur  Matignon,  who  urged  them  to  remain  in  the  diocese  of 
Bishop  Cheverus.  Pere  Vincent  de  Paul,  however,  had  orders  to 
locate  along  the  coast  near  Baltimore.    After  remaining  at  Boston 


28 

long  enough  to  provide  a  temporary  home  for  his  brethren  and 
get  some  needed  rest,  he  started  for  Bahimore  on  foot.  The 
Archbishop  of  Baltimore  received  him  kindly  and  showed  a 
disposition  to  aid  him  in  his  undertakings,  but  was  evidently 
embarrassed  for  want  of  means.  After  a  short  while,  a  farm 
belonging  to  the  Jesuits  was  placed  at  his  command  as  a  tempo- 
rary home.  He  accepted  it  and  wrote  to  Boston  for  the  two 
brothers,  making  arrangements  at  the  same  time  to  have  the 
sister  placed  in  a  Convent  there.  Where  this  farm  was  located 
is  not  stated,  but  it  is  likely  in  the  north-east^n  part  of  St.  Mary's 
County,  Md.,  and  near  the  place  where  he  afterwards  bought  some 
land  and  established  his  colony.  Meanwhile,  a  wealthy  Balti- 
morean  convert  to  the  Catholic  faith,  offered  him  a  tract  of  land, 
containing  2000  acres,  on  the  mountains  in  Pennsylvania.  It 
was  situated  near  Milford  in  what  is  now  Pike's  County.  The 
generous  donor  offered  to  send  his  son  along  as  a  guide  if  Father 
Vincent  desired  to  go  and  view  it.  Father  Vincent  accepted  the 
proffered  services  and  at  once  started  on  his  trip.  His  visit  must 
have  been  very  brief,  and  his  inspection  very  unsatisfactory,  for 
upon  his  return  he  immediately  made  preparation  for  a  more 
prolonged  visit.  This  time  he  took  with  him  two  young  men 
who  had  applied  for  admission  into  the  Order,  permitting  them 
to  make  the  journey  as  part  of  their  novitiate.  The  two  brothers 
were  left  on  the  farm  in  Maryland. 

A  sentence  in  Pere  Vincent's  memoirs  conveys  the  idea  that 
this  second  trip  was  made  from  Philadelphia.  He  states  that  the 
whole  journey  was  made  in  silence  and  on  foot,  and  in  the  next 
sentence  referring  to  Milford,  he  locates  it  as  sixty  miles  from 
Philadelphia,  the  starting  point  of  the  journey.  Possibly  this 
refers  only  to  that  portion  of  the  trip  which  was  made  on  foot. 
If  Philadelphia  was  the  bona  fide  starting-point,  the  two  novices 
were  likely  Philadelphians.  Father  Vincent  de  Paul  was  in 
Philadelphia  in  August,  181 3,  at  which  time  he  stopped  with 
Bishop  Egan,  at  old  St.  Joseph's,  for  at  least  one  week.  He 
baptized  Rosetta  De  Silva  on  August  22d,  Jane  Havelan  on 
August  29th  and  John  Paul  on  August  30th.  It  was  then  that 
he  started  on  his  second  trip  to  Pike  County,  for  he  says  in  his 
memoirs,  that  they  made  the  journey  in  summer  and  in  very 
warm  weather.      The  only  place  along  the   route  of  which  he 


29 

speaks  is  Milford.  Here  he  celebrated  mass  on  a  Sunday,  and 
had  for  his  congregation  all  the  people  of  the  town,  though  there 
was  not-a  Catholic  among  them.  After  mass  the  two  young  men 
gave  some  instructions  on  the  Catholic  faith.  The  people  re- 
quested him  to  remain  among  them,  and  offered  to  take  up  a 
subscription  «for  his  support.  One  man  promised  to  give  fifty 
dollars.  Father  Vincent,  however,  had  not  come  as  a  missionary, 
but  to  establish  his  Order.  He  accordingly  proceeded  with  his 
companions  to  the  farm,  or  more  correctly  speaking  tract  of 
forest  land.  The  exact  location  of  this  piece  of  land  is  not 
known,  but  might  be  discovered  through  the  aid  of  some  of  the 
oldest  residents  of  Pike  County.  It  was  on  the  mountain  not  far 
from  Milford  nor  very  far  from  the  Delaware  River,  hence  it  must 
have  been  north-west  of  Milford. 

Upon  their  arrival  at  the  place,  Pere  Vincent  and  his  com- 
panions built  a  temporary  cabin  out  of  branches  of  trees.  In  it 
they  sought  shelter  at  night,  and  from  it  they  made  their  ex- 
cursions through  the  dense  forests  to  inspect  the  land.  As  a 
guide,  they  usually  had  a  boy  or  young  man  from  the  neighboring 
country.  One  day,  when  Pere  Vincent  and  the  boy  were 
out  together  they  lost  their  way,  and  were  overtaken  by  night. 
Seeing  a  large  flat  rock  close  by,  Pere  Vincent  suggested  that 
they  camp  on  it  over  night.  "  If  we  do,"  said  the  boy,  "we 
will  be  devoured  by  bears."  Soon  after,  such  unearthly  howls 
went  up  from  the  dense  woods  around,  that  Father  Vincent  was 
glad  to  continue  his  search  for  the  cabin  until  he  found  it.  Two 
weeks  were  spent  in  examining  the  tract  of  land,  and  two  weeks 
of  hardship  they  were  to  Pere  Vincent  and  his  novices.  The 
bare  earth  had  to  serve  them  as  beds,  and  during  the  first  few 
days  they  had  to  depend  on  wild  fruits  for  their  sustenance.  On 
the  fourth  day,  a  Jew  and  a  Protestant  came  to  their  relief  with 
potatoes.  The  Jew  remained  with  them  over  Sunday  and 
attended  mass,  evincing,  says  Pere  Vincent,  a  great  interest  in  the 
Catholic  faith.  During  the  two  weeks,  Pere  Vincent  said  mass 
several  times  in  the  cabin.  He  gave  religious  instructions  to  a 
family  consisting  of  father,  mother  and  three  children,  and  had 
hopes  of  receiving  them  into  the  Catholic  church,  but  owing  to 
the  interference  of  a  woman  from  Milford,  was  disappointed. 
One  day  his  companions  and  himself  made  a  cross  and  carried  it 


30 

in  procession  for  the  distance  of  a  mile,  singing  psalms  all  the 
way.  The  latter  part  of  the  route  they  walked  in  their  bare  feet, 
though  rattle-snakes  abounded,  and  at  its  terminus  they  planted 
the  cross.  Pere  Vincent  soon  discovered  that  the  tract  of  land  at 
his  refusal,  was  not  a  good  site  for  a  Trappist  monastery.  It 
consisted  of  rocks  and  marshes,  was  over-run  by  snakes  and  wild 
animals,  and  was  too  far  from  large  towns  and  too  difficult  of 
approach.  He  would  gladly  have  remained  as  a  missionary,  but 
bound  as  he  was  by  his  vows  to  the  interest  of  his  Order,  he 
could  not  do  so.  In  company  with  his  novices,  he  accordingly 
retraced  his  steps  to  the  shores  of  Maryland.  As  on  his  way  up, 
so  on  the  return  trip,  he  tarried  for  a  few  days  with  Bishop  Egan 
at  old  St.  Joseph's,  in  Philadelphia.  He  is  recorded  as  having 
baptized  Ann  Elizabeth  and  John  Sturges,  twins,  on  October  4th, 
1 81 3,  Mary  Ann  Shields  and  Margaret  Dorothea  on  October  loth, 
and  Mary  Ann  Norbeck  and  Edward  Russell  on  October  nth. 
He  acquainted  Bishop  Egan  of  the  ripening  vineyard  in  the 
northern  part  of  the  State  and  advised  him  to  send  evangelical 
laborers  into  it,  but  the  Bishop  had  no  one  to  send. 

The  part  of  Maryland  to  which  Pere  Vincent  went,  was  the 
north-east  of  St.  Mary's  County,  the  most  southern  county  of  the 
State.  He  describes  the  place  as  being  situated  on  the  coast 
near  the  Patuxent  River  and  not  far  from  the  Potomac.  The 
Archbishop  of  Baltimore  and  the  Sulpicians  had  long  since 
advised  him  to  establish  his  colony  there.  Many  statements  in 
his  memoirs  would  lead  one  to  believe  that  it  was  there  he  left 
the  two  brothers,  and  that  he  began  the  settlement  before  he  made 
his  trips  to  Pike  County,  Pennsylvania.  This  view  gains  addi- 
tional strength  from  the  fact  that  three  brothers,  who  arrived  from 
France  at  the  end  of  181 2,  or  in  the  beginning  of  1813,  are  said 
to  have  joined  the  colony  in  Maryland. 

At  what  time  the  monks  gave  up  the  temporary  home  on  the 
Jesuit  farm  and  bought  land  of  their  own,  and  what  distance  the 
two  places  were  apart,  I  have  not  been  able  to  learn.  Pere 
Vincent  says  that  land  was  bought  and  its  clearance  at  once 
begun.  The  colony  lodged  with  a  private  family  in  the  neigh- 
borhood until  it  had  time  to  put  up  quarters  for  itself  With  the 
aid  of  the  negroes  of  the  vicinity,  who,  Pere  Vincent  says,  were 
all  Catholics,  the  brothers  completed  a  log-house  eighteen  feet 


31 

square  in  a  short  time.  Afterwards  a  chapel  was  begun  but  it 
was  likely  never  finished.  During  the  Winter  sufficient  land  was 
prepared  to  make  a  potato-patch,  a  garden  and  a  nursery.  Pere 
Vincent  speaks  in  terms  of  praise  of  the  fertility  of  the  soil  ; 
hence,  no  doubt,  the  efforts  at  farming  were  successful.  The 
colony  was  doing  well,  but  as  Spring  approached,  unlocked  for 
enemies  sprung  up,  which,  as  time  wore  on  into  Summer,  grew 
to  be  almost  unbearable.  The  effluvia  from  the  marshes  along 
the  rivers  breeded  disease  and  pestiferous  insects,  and  the  great 
heat  of  the  Summer  was  most  oppressive.  The  colony,  however, 
held  out  for  one  season.  Toward  the  end  of  1813,  it  was 
augmented  by  the  arrival  of  Pere  Urban  and  his  comrades. 
Father  Vincent  says  that  Pere  Urban  joined  his  colony  just  before 
its  departure  for  New  York.  The  only  clew  I  have  been  able  to 
find  to  the  time  when  the  Maryland  setdement  broke  up,  is  in 
the  baptismal  records  of  St.  Joseph's  Church,  Philadelphia. 
Father  Vincent  de  Paul  is  there  recorded  as  having  baptized 
Sarah  Ann  Johnson  on  January  i8th,  1814,  John  Peter  Scott, 
adult,  on  January  23d,  and  Peter  Robert  Mayot  on  the  same  day. 
These  baptisms  he  must  have  administered  when  on  his  way  to 
New  York.  Sometime  before  the  departure  from.  Maryland  two 
brothers  died  and  were  buried  in  the  orchard  close  to  the  house. 
Their  surviving  brethren,  fearing  that  their  graves  might  be 
desecrated  when  the  property  fell  into  other  hands,  before  leaving, 
took  up  the  bodies  at  night,  and  on  the  following  day  buried 
them  in  a  cemetery  at  the  nearest  village.  Possibly  these  were 
some  of  Father  Urban' s  sick  comrades. 

As  already  intimated,  Dom  Augustine,  the  superior  of  the 
Order,  and  its  rescuer  in  1790,  had  come  to  America,  to  himself 
try  to  establish  his  Order.  After  a  most  unhappy  voyage,  during 
which  he  had  been  cast  into  prison  at  Martinique,  upon  the 
accusation  of  one  of  his  own  men,  he  arrived  in  New  York  in 
the  early  part  of  1813,  bringing  with  him  several  English  and 
Irish  monks  from  Lulworth.  He  at  once  cast  about  for  a  site  for 
his  monastery,  and  after  a  short  while  found  a  suitable  property, 
which  he  purchased  for  ten  thousand  dollars.  He  called  to  New 
York,  the  colony  in  Maryland,  thus  gathering  into  one  house  all 
the  Trappists  in  America,  except  Father  Maria  Joseph,  who  was 
still  on  the  mission  in  Missouri.     Barely  enough  survived  to  make 


one  communitit}'.  The  exact  location  ot  the  monastery  1  have 
not  been  able  to  discover,  but  Father  Vincent  says  it  was  situated 
on  the  plains  not  far  from  New  York  City. 

While  looking  after  the  interest  of  his  own  house,  Dom 
Augustine  did  not  forget  the  sister,  who  was  patiently  waiting  at 
Boston  for  an  opportunity  to  establish  the  female  branch  of  the 
Order.  He  had  her  come  to  New  York,  procured  for  her  a 
house  near  the  monastery,  and  thus  enabled  her  to  establish  a 
convent,  though  necessarily  on  a  very  small  scale.  Probably 
other  sisters  of  the  Order  had  meanwhile  come  over  from  Europe, 
and  it  is  not  unlikely  that  recruits  had  come  in  from  natives  of 
the  country.  Pere  Vincent  de  Paul  was  appointed  chaplain  to 
the  convent  and  also  to  an  Ursuline  Convent  about  three  and  a 
quarter  miles  from  the  monastery.  He  said  mass  at  both  places 
on  Sundays  and  feast-days.  At  the  Ursuline  Convent  he  received 
three  Protestant  young  ladies,  boarding  scholars,  into  the  Catholic 
church. 

For  awhile  the  Trappist  monastery  near  New  York  flourished. 
Dom  Augustine  took  charge  of  thirty-three  children,  most  of 
whom  were  orphans,  to  feed,  cloth  and  educate  gratuitously. 
Many  persons,  both  Catholic  and  Protestant,  visited  the  place, 
attracted  no  doubt  in  a  great  measure  by  curiosity.  Many  con- 
versions to  Catholicity  followed,  says  Gaillardin  and  among  those 
who  embraced  the  faith  were  some  Protestant  clergymen.  An 
especially  large  crowd  was  drawn  to  the  vicinity  of  the  monastery 
on  the  Feast  of  Corpus  Christi,  when  the  monks  having  erected 
altars,  at  internals,  in  a  large  field,  carried  the  Blessed  Sacrament 
around  it  in  public  procession.  In  spite,  however,  of  apparent 
success  the  monastery  could  not  gain  a  permanent  foot-hold  at 
New  York.  Unexpected  opposition  sprung  up,  money  was 
wanting,  and  there  was  a  yearning  0:1  the  part  of  many  of  the 
monks  to  return  to  France.  In  the  Fall  of  1814,  it  was  decided 
to  return  to  Europe,  and  steps  were  at  once  taken  to  do  so.  The 
members  were  divided  into  three  groups.  One  consisting  of 
twelve  members,  including  the  sisters,  was  taken  charge  of  by 
Dom  Augustine  himself;  another  numbering  fifteen  persons,  was 
placed  under  the  guidance  of  Pere  Urban  ;  and  the  third,  com- 
posed of  seven  people,  under  the  direction  of  Father  Vmcent  de 
Paul.     The  first  and   second  set  sail  in  October,  1814,  in  two 


33 

separate  vessels.  The  third  remained  behind  to  close  up  the 
temporal  affairs  of  the  monastery  and  did  not  leave  New  York 
until  May,  1815,  when  it  set  sail  for  Halifax  on  its  way  to  Europe. 
At  Halifax  the  ship  was  detained,  and  when  it  departed  for 
Europe,  Pere  Vincent  was  by  accident  left  ashore.  Looking 
upon  the  matter  as  Providential,  and  knowing  of  no  way  to  get 
to  his  brethern,  he  began  at  once  to  devote  himself  to  a  mission- 
ary life,  in  which  he  continued  for  many  years.  His  life  has  been 
recently  published  by  Miss  Amy  Pope,  of  Charlottetown,  Prince 
Edward  Island,  to  whom  I  am  under  obligations  for  a  transcript 
of  part  of  his  memoirs. 

The  only  Trappist  left  in  the  United  States  after  18 15,  was 
Pere  Maria  Joseph,  who  continued  his  missionary  work  in 
Missouri  until  1820,  when  he  likewise  returned  to  France.  At 
the  request  of  his  superior  he  published  memoirs  of  his  work  in 
America.  These  I  have  not  been  able  to  get  the  use  of,  although 
a  copy  is  extant  in  Canada. 


ERRATUM. 
Page  3,  line  6,  for  Sf.  Bernard  read  Benno. 


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